| A | B |
|---|
| Hrothgar | The king of the Danes who builds Herot, a beautiful mead hall. |
| Scild | Hrothgar's ancestor, a famous Danish king who won fame "swinging mighty swords." |
| Danish Watcher | A Danish lookout who quizzes Beowulf about why he has come to Denmark before he takes Beowulf to meet Hrothgar. |
| Beowulf | Our Geatish epic hero, who slays monsters and dragons and embodies the warrior idea |
| Wiglaf | A brave young Geatish warrior who comes to Beowulf's aid in the battle with the dragon, though he's never been in a battle before. |
| Grendel | A monster, a descendent of Cain who lives in the swamps and hates the Danes for their happiness and the hymns they sing to God. |
| Grendel's mother | Monster #2, who lived in a lair under a lake and can be killed only with an ancient sword with special power |
| Dragon | The keeper of the hoard, who is awakened when a thief steals a cup from his treasure. |
| Epic | A long serious story about a "larger than life" hero whose actions (either in battle or a long journey), help to determine the fate of a people. |
| Kenning | A compound word, often metaphorical, used in Anglo-Saxon poetry, such as "whale-road" for the sea or "bone locks" for joints or "battle sweat" for blood shed in battle |
| Caesura | The pause in the middle of the line in Anglo-Saxon poetry |
| Alliteration | A repetition of consonant sounds (a key "sound effect" used to create the muscular music of Anglo-Saxon poetry) |
| Scop | An Anglo-Saxon poet/storyteller |
| 55 BC | The year the Romans invaded Britain, led by Julius Caesar |
| 449 AD | The year the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes invaded Britain, beginning the Anglo-Saxon period in British history |
| 1066 AD | The year the Norman French, led by William the Conqueror, defeated the Anglo-Saxons in the Battle of Hastings, ending the Anglo-Saxon period. The Anglo-Saxons remained in England, a conquered people, but their world and their language changed. |
| Scribe | A monk whose job it was to copy texts (by writing and illustrating them). |
| Lyric | A type of poem that expresses a feeling. An example is "The Wife's Lament." |
